You’ve
fought your way through countless hordes of Ousted,
decided upon a discipline within your archetype of choice (
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/66493" target="_blank">Rogue,
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/66603" target="_blank">Spellcaster
or
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/66703" target="_blank">Warrior)
and even managed to complete the
style="font-style: italic;">Kestel
Run
in record time. All the while you’ve no doubt heard whispers
from the eclectic mix of NPCs you’ve met on your journeys
about the five High Houses; the distinct branches of the Enclave which
you’ve dutifully served since first stepping off the
shardship at Hawk’s Landing.

Unlike the more artificial, or tacked on approach to factions present
in many MMOs, the High Houses are tied to nearly all aspects of
gameplay to varying degrees - a fact made all the more pertinent as you
advance your way to level nine which is when you can begin the process
of deciding which High House you want to align yourself with. As this
is truly a milestone of character advancement that will have a direct
impact on the future of your character, we’ve put together
the following guide to five High Houses in
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/116"
target="_blank">
style="font-style: italic;">The Chronicles of
Spellborn;
Maul, Rune, Shroud, Silver and Torque.

Upon hitting Fame Level nine you’ll have the opportunity to
embark on a series of quests that will culminate in not only granting
you access to a potentially eventful shardship journey to Quarterstone,
a city which dwarfs Hawksmouth in nearly every aspect, but will open up
the rest of Spellborn’s various Shards for exploration and
ultimately ally you with one of the five main High Houses of the
Enclave. You’ll be alerted that it’s time to begin
your journey by one of the game’s handy tutorial windows
which offers the following brief description of what the process is all
about:

Around the time you
reach the ninth Fame Level, you will be allowed to
join one of the five High Houses of the Enclave. The choice is
permanent and will influence Quests. Be aware that certain events are
exclusive to a certain High House. If you want to play these with
friends, be sure you and your friends all join the same High House.

Once you have completed the associated Quest Chain you will be sent to
Quarterstone where you can finish your registration at the Palace
District allowing you unrestricted use of shardship travel to any of
the Shards.

Before sending you off to Aldenvault
Village to speak with Lieutenant Commander Stalwart though, here are a
few useful bits of information that should prove useful in your coming
journey:

A high PeP (
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/67139" target="_blank">Personal
Experience Point) rank will be
your best friend
here, as the initial quest involves a good deal of running. While this
isn’t entirely necessary, I found it exceedingly beneficial
to attain at least PeP rank three to gain the 20% boost to run speed.
This will dramatically reduce the time spent scurrying back and from to
the various Houses!

Interested in creating or
joining a guild but worried about how it
might impact High House selection? Fear not! Guilds can consist of any
mix of players allied with the five Houses – after all, they
style="font-style: italic;">are
all part of the Enclave. Any such restrictions will be entirely
player-controlled, such as a heavy RP guild that wants to keep
membership limited to a specific House.

An exception to the above
rule might come into play if you’re
planning on spending your time in Spellborn on the PvP server. In that
case, High House selection will dictate who you’re able to
freely attack (you can’t attack members of the same High
House), so it’s a good idea to find other players who might
be interested in the same House before diving headfirst into creating
or joining a new guild. Unless of course you’re considering
joining House Shroud, in which case it might be natural for members to
occasionally stab one another in the back!

While not overly
restrictive, High House selection
style="font-style: italic;">is
a permanent
decision, much like Discipline selection at Fame Level five. Unlike
Disciplines though, you
style="font-style: italic;">do
have the opportunity to abandon the initial
quest given by the individual Houses before completion, which will
allow you to begin the Initiation quest line for another House.

Two of the Houses (Silver
and Torque) are located back in Hawksmouth.
While you’re there for the introductory quest
style="font-style: italic;">The High
Houses, it’s a good
idea to stop by the local shops to pick
up your second Body Slot item if you haven’t already done so.
These become available for use at Fame Level 10, so having it in your
backpack and ready to use can save you an extra trip later on!

It’s also worth
mentioning that the two initial quests
–
style="font-style: italic;">Time to Choose
and The
High Houses – are
optional. In other words, if you already have a specific House in mind,
you can always skip over these intro quests and head there directly to
pick up the first Initiation quest. If you don’t mind a bit
of running, or otherwise want to poke around the five High Houses
before making your decision, your efforts will be rewarded with 2710
Fame (the amount gained upon completion at Fame Level nine) –
not too shabby for what comes down to a bit of exploration all things
considered!

Speaking of the two intro quests, it’s time we head on over
to Aldenvault Village and pay a visit to Lieutenant Commander Stalwart
who has an introductory quest to get you started on the path to High
House selection!

style="color: rgb(255, 204, 51);">
style="font-weight: bold;">Time to Choose and The
High Houses

DESCRIPTION:
Commander Stalwart sure does love handing out quests that lead you to a
second NPC who offers you a follow-up quest, and Time to Choose is no
exception. After providing a brief overview on what High House
selection is all about, the Commander will ask you to speak with a
neutral party – Enclave Delegate Mitran Tam - for more
details, since the Commander himself belongs to House Maul and
wouldn’t want his personal bias to influence your decision.

NOTABLE
QUOTE:

“I’m
not allowed to say anything about this because I could influence you,
being from Maul and all, but there’s a person
that’s far better at telling you about them, and
that’s Mitran Tam.
style="font-style: italic;">

He’s
an Enclave Delegate here in Aldenvault and you can find him near the
well. Give him my Order document and he’ll guide you further
should you wish to know more.”

border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2">

style="text-align: left; width: 408px; vertical-align: top;">

QUEST:
The High Houses

OBTAINED
AT: Aldenvault Village

REWARD:
2710 Fame

DESCRIPTION:
Once you hand over the Order document from Lieutenant Commander
Stalwart, Enclave Delegate Mitran Tam will offer you a follow-up quest
intended to introduce you to each of the five High Houses. This one
involves a fair amount of running, as completion is dependent upon
speaking to a member from each House, but by the time you’re
finished you should have at least a general understanding of the role
each one plays in Enclave.

NOTABLE
QUOTE:

“All
you have to do is travel to the five High House structures on
Parliament. House Rune, Shroud and Maul can be found here on the
Midlands, while Silver and Torque are stationed in Hawksmouth.
style="font-style: italic;">

Talk
to the House Ambassador of each of the Houses to learn something about
their agenda and their proposed future for the Enclave. Keep in mind
though that not everything is as it seems. The Houses have quarreled
before and they will stop at nothing
to…insult…the other Houses if the opportunity
arises.”

OFFICIAL
LORE: While it is often seen
as the High House for those who favor brawn over brain, House Maul is
actually more than that. Having awarded itself the title Protector of
the Enclave, House Maul is the first line of defense in many a
situation. They do focus on physical combat, but they also develop new
strategic initiatives, sophisticated weaponry and research magic to
promote healthcare. Of course House Maul thinks actions speak louder
than words and as such may often find themselves at odds with the more
'literate' Houses who do not like to get their hands dirty.

As far as House Maul is concerned, getting one's hands dirty is what
has kept the Enclave from falling. And as long as it exists the Enclave
will remain protected.

DESCRIPTION:
A militant House through and through, House Maul will take every
opportunity to remind members of the Enclave that it’s thanks
to their protection that the Enclave continues to exist at all. While
there’s a measured amount of truth to these claims, House
Maul tends to be all brawn and no brains, leaving politicking and
strategizing to the other Houses.

NOTABLE
QUOTE:

“We
protect those that are incapable of fending for themselves. We make
sure that the Enclave can live in relative peace without being invaded
by the horrors that lurk within the Dreadspell Storm or those foolish
enough to resist our might.”

Speaking with House Ambassador Ilas Shardborn will give you credit
towards completion of The High Houses.

DESCRIPTION:
If you decide to ally with House Maul, you’ll want to speak
to Guardmaster Mirage Noctis who offers the initiation quest Test of
Might. True to form, becoming an Initiate of House Maul involves
busting some Ousted skulls as a means of testing your prowess in
battle. The Guardmaster puts it quite eloquently in the following quote:

NOTABLE
QUOTE:

“Always
be ready for anything that comes your way, and then hit it over the
head and slice it in half.
style="font-style: italic;">

Sounds
like the perfect description of what I want you to do. I have received
some reports about
style="font-weight: bold;">Ousted Insurgents
roaming in the
style="font-weight: bold;">south-eastern
parts
of Aldenvault;
the ones
near Wagonwood.
style="font-style: italic;">

OFFICIAL
LORE: House Rune craves
knowledge in any form. Initially a part of the Deadspell Alliance,
House Rune decided to stay with the remaining Houses instead, for too
much had changed that needed proper research first. As the Great
Collapse had shifted the magical spectrum, House Rune initially focused
on rediscovering the essence of magic that had changed so
fundamentally, leading many to think that House Rune consists solely
out of mages. Instead they consist out of scholar in every field.
Whether they are warriors, spellcasters or rogues, those who want to
propel their profession into the future usually join House Rune and
help support the fountain of knowledge that springs within their ranks.

To Rune knowledge is what will drive the Enclave forward. That
knowledge can come at a price, but House Rune is very willing to pay
each and every copper for it.

DESCRIPTION:
If House Maul is all about brawn before brains, then you could consider
House Rune to be somewhat the polar opposite, standing for thought
before action. House Rune is all about the accumulation of knowledge
above all else. As such, though Rune is a House of intellectuals, they
tend to leave the political strategizing of the Enclave to House Torque
in favor of collecting all forms of knowledge, “for the
betterment of the Enclave”.

NOTABLE
QUOTE:

“We
excel at research and studies; revealing new discoveries and secrets of
old. Whether it is magic or mechanics, we gather knowledge for the good
of the people.
style="font-style: italic;">

Of
course that is only the beginning. We not only gather knowledge, we
apply it as well. Shardships? We devised those. Ankhlights? Our
invention. Of course we also employ our knowledge elsewhere like in
combat. The Red Lodge being a prime example of how knowledge and
research into the old and new can create superior fighting abilities.”

Speaking with House Ambassador Peyache Ponoine will give you credit
towards completion of The High Houses.

DESCRIPTION:
Chamberlain Sprytt Temackine certainly likes to take digs at House Maul
whenever possible, and will no doubt attempt to remind you of his
supposedly ‘superior’ intellect. As a veritable
House of ‘intellectuals’, it’s only
fitting that your Right of Initiation into House Rune involves simply
familiarizing yourself with the House itself while collecting
signatures from the deans of the various House departments on a Sign
Card as described below:

NOTABLE
QUOTE:

“It’s
wise to introduce
yourself to the deans of the
departments here; Dean Pickforts of the Rune Department, Dean Atcenum
of the Soul Department and Dean Walexy of the Spirit Department. Since
you need to familiarize yourself with the Rune High House, I
won’t tell you where you can find them.
style="font-weight: bold;">Bring me their signatures
on this Sign Card and we’ll discuss your real assignments.”

OFFICIAL
LORE: The oldest High
House by anyone's reckoning House Shroud feels like a caring father to
the other Houses, often taking up the role as advisers in council. They
often provide a second opinion on matters and manage to acquire
information and truths of old forgotten times that can prove crucial at
any time. House Shroud never puts itself in the spotlight, yet prefers
to remain backstage guiding the other Houses with knowledge, wisdom,
experience and much, much more.

That they have a team of elite operatives at their disposal is merely
an unsubstantiated rumor. After all, House Shroud's main operation is
maintaining a smoothly running postal service. Anything else would be
pure speculation in the eye of the beholder. Got that?

DESCRIPTION:
House Shroud
has a single primary concern; safeguarding the strength and versatility
of House Shroud itself. Mild mannered postal workers on the surface,
even this aspect of House Shroud is little more than dazzle camouflage
as the true aim here is to have their hands in the mail coming out of
and heading towards the other Houses. This allows House Shroud to stay
one step ahead of their enemies… well, most of the time,
anyway!

NOTABLE
QUOTE:

“Without
our continued strength
and without a healthy hierarchy, the Enclave will fall anyway. We want
to gather more information about our enemies, our past and about
anything that sounds interesting. If that means more stealthy
approaches, well, so be it!”

Speaking with House Ambassador Mirna Keldran will give you credit
towards completion of The High Houses.

DESCRIPTION:
The Right of
Initiation for House Shroud involves intercepting the Crimson Courier
who has important documents intended for House Silver. Naturally House
Shroud is feeling left out of the loop and won’t stand for
secret
plans to be delivered without finding out exactly what House Silver is
financially supporting. All you need to do is knock the courier out and
deliver the secret plans to a Shroud agent who will be awaiting your
arrival as described below:

NOTABLE
QUOTE:

“The
plans are being carried to
their High House in Hawksmouth as we speak by a courier dressed in red.
I have no name for you, but I know that he should arrive
style="font-weight: bold;">at the Aldengate structure
any time
now. From there he’ll enter Hawksmouth Town.
style="font-style: italic;">

style="font-weight: bold;">Knock
him out and grab the plans,
since you are not aligned to any of
the houses yet, he won’t be able to recognize you. There are
enough recruits running around as it is.
style="font-style: italic;">

I
do want you to make sure you
are not followed and then
style="font-weight: bold;">bring the
plans to Lotha Inerad at Eqatt’s Farm near the Aldengate
structure
and I don’t have to tell you to keep this between us, now do
I?”

Upon completion of this quest you will be an initiate of House Shroud.

OFFICIAL
LORE: One of the younger High
Houses, House Silver emerged quite literally from trade. They amassed
such wealth that it was impossible to exclude them from any
decision-making. Initially seen as a nuisance because of it, House
Silver proved pivotal in getting the economy of the Enclave up and
running and they continue to do so. House Silver consists out of three
separate entities: the Scales of Habitat, the Scales of Storms and the
Scales of Trade. Together they govern taxes and housing, transportation
and trade respectively for the Enclave. Of course the one problem with
having wealth is that one always wants more of it and House Silver is
no exception.

According to House Silver attaining monetary funds is paramount to the
stability of the Enclave and to secure its future.

DESCRIPTION:
As the name suggests, House Silver is the beating pulse of trade in the
Enclave. It only takes a quick glance around the lavish interior of
this particular house, with its numerous sculptures, fountains and
giant piles of coin to know that House Silver means business when it
comes to conducting business! For those players more interested in
tracking their achievements at the auction house more so than on the
battle field, this is certainly the House for you.

NOTABLE
QUOTE:

“We
control the flow of money and goods within the Enclave and provide
transportation between the Shards. But we also provide entertainment
for the masses and at the same time train a new group of freelancers to
be deployed by the Enclave at times of need.”

Speaking with House Ambassador Lornedus Mintster will give you credit
towards completion of The High Houses.

DESCRIPTION:
It seems that House Silver has been having trouble of late getting
certain financial documents delivered to them. Apparently someone keeps
knocking out their courier and taking off with the documents before
they arrive each time. Hmm… I wonder who could possibly be
responsible… *glances knowingly at Darsius Nehra from House
Silver*

NOTABLE
QUOTE:

“Whenever
money is involved we rely on excellent communication between all
parties involved. For some reason though, we seem to be having some
trouble getting certain financial documents here. A lot of trouble
even. Each time one of those couriers set foot on the docks, some
rascal knocks him down and takes off with the documents. Quite
maddening, really. If only we knew who was behind this… But
that’s another problem.
style="font-style: italic;">

Go
to the Crimson
Courier at Hawksmouth Docks,
claim his documents
in the name of House Silver and bring them back to me.
style="font-weight: bold;">Watch your back
though; if those couriers can be attacked so can you.”

Upon completion of this quest you will be an initiate of House Silver.

OFFICIAL
LORE: House Torque has
a long tradition of political leadership to uphold. Commonly regarded
as the bureaucrats of the Enclave, their history is also steeped in
heroism. Many of the heroes of mankind were supplied by House Torque.
Whether it’s Bartion Mornex’s Ancestral endeavors
in saving
the Allied Houses from failure against the Vhelgar or Graidlon
Marrow’s selfless sacrifice to give birth to the Enclave,
these
heroes hail from Torque. The High House does like everything to be
maintained in an orderly fashion and as such they are the driving force
behind many laws and policies (including the Law of Ousting) and their
upholding through officials.

To Torque it is clear that without good leadership and a proper
society, the Enclave would not exist and as such it will do anything
within its power to keep the Enclave as a shining example of
civilization.

DESCRIPTION:
In much the
same way House Maul believes any conflict can be settled with a hefty
sword or House Silver believes there’s nothing you
can’t
resolve with the proper funds, House Torque prefers to settle conflict
through negotiation, avoiding bloodshed whenever possible. Indeed,
it’s thanks to House Torque that many of the current laws
meant
to strengthen the solidity of the Enclave exist at all. Then again, be
sure to ask the next Ousted you see what their views are on Enclave
solidity and you’ll no doubt hear a different side of things.

NOTABLE
QUOTE:

“The
future is bright as long
as the Enclave remains whole. We at House Torque believe in maintaining
a tight grip on the Enclave and to make sure that whatever happens, the
citizens of the Enclave can live in freedom and peace without endless
wars and years of conflict.”

Speaking with House Ambassador Ortolph Dehend will give you credit
towards completion of The High Houses.

DESCRIPTION:
It seems
that House Silver isn’t the only House that’s
reluctant to
allow important documents to slip into the hands of House
Shroud’s postal workers. The Right of Initiation for House
Torque
involves sending you to various locations in and around Hawksmouth to
deliver four letters to individuals who have been known to harbor ill
intent towards the Enclave as a single entity as described below:

NOTABLE
QUOTE:

“The
first letter is to
style="font-weight: bold;">Theran Allbark.
You can find him
over at Mahethiu Svenie’s
style="font-weight: bold;">naira
farm to the
style="font-weight: bold;">east of Hawksmouth.
style="font-style: italic;">

The
second letter is for
style="font-weight: bold;">Lorus Gray,
one of the merchants at
style="font-weight: bold;">Hawksmouth Marketplace.
style="font-style: italic;">

The
third letter is to be
brought to Lisana
Bork. She
has been seen picking mushrooms near the
style="font-weight: bold;">Lumberyard
in Hawk’s Wall just
outside Hawksmouth.
style="font-style: italic;">

The
fourth letter is for a man
within Hawksmouth; goes by the name
style="font-weight: bold;">Tirel
Desa. Usually hangs around
the Silver
High House, might even join
them I think.
style="font-style: italic;">

style="font-weight: bold;">Return
here after you have delivered the letters.
I am anxious to hear
what they think about our proposal.”

Upon completion of this quest you will be an initiate of House Torque.